Quiet like the Snow
by malicent
Summary: Katy is an average kittypet, until she meets Snowy. Introduced to a whole new life, Katy meets the cat of her dreams - Scourge. Once again Snowy must fight for what she believes in, and more importantly, who she loves.
1. She's Back

Quiet like the Snow

**Hello, everyone! If you've stumbled across this story, make sure you know that this is a SEQUEL to my previous story, The Broken Cat. So yeah, read that story first! **

**And to those who've read The Broken Cat, thanks for reading! And I hope you like this story just as much as the last! **

Chapter 1: She's Back

Katy looked up at the stars, her blue eyes reflecting the moon. She was thinking about her life, and what had become of it. _Is this all I was created for? _Katy thought. _A pet? _Lost in thought, Katy didn't hear the door to her twoleg house open.

"Katy!" her twoleg called, making Katy jump. She turned her head around to look at her twoleg, an old female with a wrinkly face and trembling bones. Katy ran up to her, and purred when she was patted on the head.

"Good girl," the twoleg crooned. "You frightened me. I was starting to think you had gotten lost in the forest."

Katy didn't know what her twoleg was saying, so she pressed her head lovingly against her twolegs hand, purring louder. The twolegs name was Margaret, and she had adopted Katy nearly two years ago. However much Katy thought about her uneventful life, she loved Margaret, and she loved her house. It was always full of warm cat food and soft beds, a comfortable place for Katy to live. She opened her eyes into slits, and caught a glimpse of the forest beyond Margaret's fence. The dark forest seemed to stretch forever, the moon casting an eerie glow over the treetops. Katy turned her head away, and followed her twoleg into the house.

The dark forest remained still.

**(Page breaker)**

Katy woke up to the sound of jingling cat food. Blinking open her eyes, Katy saw Margaret standing over her, shaking her cat dish. Katy jumped up excitedly, belly growling with hunger. Margaret set the dish down for her, then walked away to prepare a bowl of milk. Katy ate the food gratefully, and meowed happily when Margaret set down the milk. Katy lapped it up in minutes, relishing the feeling of the cold milk against the dry cat food on her tongue. Satisfied, Katy walked away, her belly full. She pushed her way out of her cat flap, blinking her eyes against the morning sun.

"Good morning, Katy!"

Katy turned her head to find the source of the voice. Tom, a dark brown well, tom stood high on the fence separating their yards.

"Good morning!" Katy called back, smiling as she remembered the way Tom had introduced himself to her during the first time they met. _Hi, I'm Tom the tom. _

"Isn't it a nice day?" Tom purred as he leaped down from his fence and into Katy's yard.

"It's wonderful," Katy exclaimed, rubbing her paws on the damp grass. Tom ruffled his fur, letting the slight breeze fluff it up. "I had the goofiest dream last night," Tom mused.

"Was it about that darned mouse again?"

"Surprisingly, no," Tom said, then stopped talking altogether. Katy figured he must have lost his train of thought thinking about his mouse dream, because he stood there with his mouth dangling open.

"Tom," Katy snapped. Tom snapped out of his trance at once. "Sorry. Anyways, no I didn't have that lousy mouse dream again. It was about that alley we visited a few weeks ago."

Katy knew exactly what he was talking about. A few weeks ago they had gone exploring, and came upon this filthy alley. Dirty looking cats were _everywhere._ Katy and Tom had sat behind a pile of bricks, and watched the cats. A grisly looking black kit had seemed to be leading them, sitting on top of a hill literally screaming at the others. He had this disgusting collar of teeth around his neck, like some of the others sitting in the crowd. Katy remembered vividly the way fear shot through her bones as the black kit locked eyes with hers. That's when she turned and ran away, vowing to never return to the alley again.

"Did you dream about that horrid kit?" Katy asked, revolted from being dragged into those memories again.

"No. I dreamed I was living at the alley. I had a collar of teeth around my neck and everything," Tom shook his head, revolted. "It was so gross, Katy."

"I can imagine," Katy replied. "Well at least it wasn't real."

"Yeah," Tom said. "But what if it was?"

Katy stared at him. "What do you mean?" she asked. Tom shrugged. "I don't know… what if it was real? I don't know why I would dream about it."

"Were you thinking about it before you went to sleep?" Katy asked. "Cause that could be why you dreamt it."

Tom sighed shaking his head. "Oh whatever," he said. "It was just a dream."  
>"Yeah," Katy said, losing interest. "Now anyways, what do you want to do today? You can come over if you want; Margaret's watching a TV show about lions."<p>

"I don't like lions," Tom said. "They scare me."

Katy snorted, making Tom defensively shrug his shoulders.

"Do you want to go exploring?" Tom asked, clearly trying to get Katy to forget about the lions. "We could go adventure through the forest."

"We did that yesterday," Katy sighed. "Remember I had to help you back home because you sprained your paw?"

"I did not _sprain my paw," _Tom said, obviously lying. "I was resting it."

"Of course you did," Katy opened her mouth to say something else but was cut off as another voice entered their conversation.

"Hello!" Harry called. Katy turned her head to see Harry wobbling on the top of the fence.

"Why did no one come see if I wanted to hang out?" Harry asked glumly. "I'm always being left out of these things."

Katy held in her giggle as Harry tried to jump gracefully of the fence but just succeeded into falling headfirst into a bush.

"We didn't mean to not include you, Harry," Tom said as Harry regained himself. "We just woke up ourselves."

Katy liked Harry, but she got the feeling that he was lonely sometimes. Whenever he caught Katy and Tom talking together, he always accused them of excluding him.

"Oh, okay," Harry said, forgetting his glumness at once. "Did you have that dream again, Tom?"

Katy groaned as Tom launched himself into the story about his mouse dream even though he didn't have it.

"Wow," Harry marveled. "That story never gets old no matter how many times you tell it."

"I beg to differ," Katy muttered. Tom shot her a look, which Katy ignored. "What are your plans for the day, Harry?" she asked.

"My twolegs are taking me to the vet again," Harry sighed. "I think it's because I broke one of their chairs."

"Why would they take you to the vet because of that?" Tom scoffed.

"Because it broke when I jumped on it," Harry said sadly. "I think my twolegs think I'm fat."

"You're not fat," Katy lied. "You just have big muscles." Katy knew for a fact that Harry got tuckered out as easily as walking across his yard.

"Maybe your right," Harry said, brightening. "I mean, look at me. I'm the strongest one here!"

Tom hid his laugh in a cough, making Katy snicker.

"Maybe they're taking me to the vet because I'm _too _strong," Harry suggested.

"Whatever you say, Harry," Katy giggled.

**(Page break)**

Katy woke up in the middle of the night, the hairs on her back standing straight up. _What's going on, _Katy thought, confused. She stood up from her warm bed, looking around.

Everything was dark.

Katy slowly walked around the kitchen, her pupils slowly dilating. Her ears grew more sensitive, making Katy able to hear Margaret breathing deeply as she slept a few doors down.

Then she heard it again.

A long, sorrowful cry coming from the front door. Katy slowly walked towards the door, her ears flattening as the cry echoed around the kitchen again. Katy jumped silently onto a table, and peered out of the window. A filthy white she cat stood there, her pelt streaked with dirt and scars. Katy's eyes widened in fear as she noticed the revolting collar of teeth around her neck. Then the cat stood up, placing her front paws on the door. Katy gasped.

She had only three legs.

Then the she-cat opened her mouth to cry, her hollow screams echoing eerily in Katys ears.


	2. First Snowfalls

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 2: First Snowfalls

Katy sqeezed her eyes shut as the three legged cat howled again. Then she started scratching at the door, obviously wanting to come in. _What do you want, _Katy thought desperatly. _Leave me alone! _Katy jumped at the sudden noise behind her. Turning around, Katy breathed a sigh of relief as she saw Margaret walking slowly into the room. _Hopefully she'll tell that cat to go away, _Katy thought hopefully. Margaret opened the door, and to Katys dismay, she started petting the dirty cat on the head. The she-cat purred raspily.

Then their eyes met.

The she-cat shrieked and pelted off in the direction of the kitchen.

"No!" Katy howled, charging after her. "That food is mine!"

Katy found the cat trying to hide in her cat bed, which annoyed Katy like crazy. "Get out!" she snapped. "That's my bed and your getting it dirty."

"I'll sit in it if I want," the cat retorted, shuffling around. Katy narrowed her eyes in annoyance as dirt cascaded of the cats pelt and onto her clean pillow.

"Will you please get out," Katy sighed. "Go back outside where you belong."

"Excuse me?" the cat snapped, climbing clumsily out of the cat bed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, your obviously a rogue," Katy huffed. "I mean look at you. You're filthy!"

The cat located Katys cat food and proceeded to scarf as much as she could down before Katy headbutted her in the side.

"Oof!" the cat grumbled, falling over onto her side. Katy realized with a jolt that she just shoved a three legged cat over.

"I'm sorry!" Katy cried. The cat just shook her head and took another bite out of Katys cat food. Katy examined her, staring at the ruddy collar of teeth around her neck. When she moved, Katy could see a bald spot under the collar, as if it had rubbed away the fur underneath it.

"Why don't you take that thing off," Katy suggested. "I can help you if you want, then you can be on your way." _Hint hint. _

"No," was the cats blunt answer. Katy rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Well why are you wearing it? It's hideous!"

"I'm wearing it because I'm the deputy of Bloodclan," the cat said, polishing off the last of the cat food. After she said that, her eyes turned sad. "Well at least, I used to be."

Katy looked sympathetically after her, trying to figure out what the heck Bloodclan was.

"Sorry bout eating all your food," the cat said. "Can I have something to drink now?"

_Can you have something to drink, my left leg. _

"Sure," Katy said reluctantly.

"Cool," the cat said, and begun cleaning her face with her paw. "My names Snowy, by the way."

"I'm Katy," Katy replied. "If I get you something to drink, will you please leave after?" Katy didn't see the point in beating around the bush any longer. Snowy looked up at her, hurt. "If you want. I was hoping I could stay for a bit."

"Don't you have a home to return too?" Katy asked. "Isn't there anyone wondering where you are?"

"Nope," Snowy said. Katy inwardly groaned as her kind instincts took over. "I guess you can stay."

"Great!" Snowy flopped back down on the cat bed and rolled away from her. "See you in the morning."

"Well I guess I'll just go sleep on the couch," Katy said irritably. The only reply from Snowy was a snore.

* * *

><p>Katy woke up in the morning to Harry staring her right in the face.<p>

"Ah!" she screamed, rolling off the couch pillow.

"Did you know theres a funny looking cat in your bed?" Harry cried, ignoring the fact he had scared the daylights out of Katy.

"She's only got three legs!" Harry howled in Katys ear.

"I'm not deaf, Harry," Katy grumbled. She padded into the kitchen to her occupied bed. Tom was standing next to the bed, looking at Snowy like she was some sort of magical creature.

"Why does everyone invite themselves into my house when I'm sleeping," Katy muttered under her breath.

"Who's this?" Tom asked.

"Snowy," Katy yawned. "She was meowing at the door last night, and Margaret let her in."

Tom, who was sitting next to the cat flap, suddenly shrieked as a kit barreled its way into Snowys house.

"Are you guys having a party?" the kit asked, out of breath. "Why did no one invite me?"

"We're not having a party, Spotty. Everyone just let themselves into my house," Katy said sarcastically. Katy always wondered if Spottys twolegs were all there, mentally. Because Spotty was a stripy cat, not a spotted one.

Spotty however, didn't detect Katys annoyance. "Oh," he said. "Hey Katy, wheres all your cat food? I was looking forward to having some."

Katys annoyance was reaching it's peak. "Snowy ate it all," she hissed. "And now I don't have any breakfast!"

Spotty opened his mouth to reply but stopped when the door to the kitchen opened. Margaret took one look at the cats sitting in the group and held up her hands to her face.

"Aww, Katy are these your friends? I know them! Harry, Tom," Margaret lovingly patted the two cats on the head. "Now who's this?" Margaret said as she noticed Snowy. "Oh you poor dear, that collars rubbing your neck," she unclasped the collar gently, making Spots gasp in disgust.

All of Snowys neck fur had been worn off.

"She's so …" Harry struggled to think of a word. "Gross." Tom looked at her for a minute. "She's not gross," he mumbled. "She's just dirty and a little messed up."

The second he said that, Snowy woke up. "Good morning group of cats I've never seen before," she yawned raising her leg to sratch her neck.

Snowy screamed as her claws met with her swollen flesh. "Ow!" she screeched. "Where did my collar go?"

"Margaret took it off you," Katy said.

"Aw no way," Snowy cried. "Jeez that's annoying! Make her give it back!"

"She took it with her," Katy replied, wondering why Snowy was getting so upset about her revolting collar. Snowy cursed under her breath and stood up.

"See you later," she snapped, then stalked towards the cat flap.

"Where are you going?" Spoty cried. Snowy ignored him and jumped out the cat flap.

"What a wonderful she-cat," Tom said. "Katy, why can't you be more like her?"

Katy smacked Tom across the face with her tail, making Harry giggle like a maniac.

* * *

><p>Bone crunched through his mouse, enjoying the taste of its warm blood soaking down onto his tongue. It was the first live prey he'd eaten in <em>weeks. <em>

"Hey, Bone!" a cat called. Bone turned his head around to look at Spots, a pale yellow tabby. Bone personally hated the cat, mainly because he had attacked Snowy nearly a year ago, while she still lived here.

"Come on a hunting patrol," Spots said, his sneering voice echoeing in Bones tired ears.

"I just did the dawn patrol," Bone protested. "I want to rest."

"I was the one who led the dawn patrol."

Spots and Bone jumped as a new voice entered their conversation. Bone turned his head around and nearly jumped again as he realized it was Scourge standing there.

"You're coming on the patrol," Scourge hissed. "And I'm leading it, so I better not hear any complaining."

Bone groaned inwardly. Spots just snorted. "I'm going to bed," he sneered. "See you later."

Bone caught Spots ear with his claw as he walked away, making him whimper.

"Bone! Now!" Scourge screamed from the other side of the alley.

"Coming, Scourge!" Bone cried, and raced across the hollow to meet him. They walked out onto the streets in silence for a while, not speaking. Then Bone realized something.

"Wheres the rest of the patrol?" Bone asked. Scourge sighed dramatically. "We _are _the patrol, you idiot."

"Oh."

Suddenly Scourge stopped, looking straight ahead.

"What?" Bone asked, then followed his eyes to see what he was looking at. At first he couldn't see anything, but when he adjusted his eyes he could see the first flakes of snow starting to fall.

"It's snowing," Bone said, which immediately made him think of Snowy.

And by the look on Scourges face, Bone knew he was thinking about Snowy too.


	3. The Voice

**Quiet like the Snow**

Chapter 3: The Voice

Snowy lay her head on her paws, tired. Her bare neck ached, and she longed to feel the itching snag of her collar once again.

_That collar symbolized my loyalty to Bloodclan,_ Snowy thought sadly. _What am I now that I've lost it? _Snowy realized that even though her past life in Bloodclan was dangerous, she missed it more than ever.

_I may be walking down a safer path, _she thought to herself. _But I'd give anything to live the dangerous life I had lived before._

* * *

><p>Katy yawned, blinking open her eyes. At once her eyes drifted over the skinny figure of Snowy. <em>Another day ruined, <em>Katy groaned inwardly. _Why won't she just leave? _Katy watched in half sympathy and half disgust as Snowy reached over to lick the bare skin where her collar had rubbed the fur off.

"Good morning," Snowy said when she realized Katy was staring at her.

"Hey," Katy muttered.

"What are your super exciting plans for the day?" Snowy said sarcastically. Katy breathed her anger out her nose, forcing herself not to snap back.

"Well," she started slowly. "Tom wanted to go exploring in the forest."

Snowy snorted. "Lovely. If you meet a group of cats who call themselves "Frostclan" then kindly let them know I hate them and they can burn in the Dark Forest for all I care."

"You're in a cheerful mood this morning," Katy grumbled. "If my plans are so lame then enlighten me. What are you doing?"

"I don't know," Snowy sighed. "Look, Katy, do you not like me or something?"

"I don't dislike you," Katy said, lowering her eyes. "I just don't really know who you are at all."

"My names Snowy," Snowy said.

Katy rolled her eyes. "I know that! I just don't know anything else."

"I can't tell you. You'll just judge me," Snowy said, reaching down to eat some of Katy's breakfast.

"Why would you say that?" Katy asked.

"Because my old life is nothing like the cushy happy life you have," Snowy said between mouthfuls. "You wouldn't be able to handle the truth."

"That's a load of fox dung," Katy snapped, getting more irritated by the second.

"That's a big word coming from someone who doesn't know the meaning of it."

"Just tell me about your old life!" Katy cried. "Or I'll get Margaret to make you leave!"

Snowy considered this for a moment, and then clearly though the better of it. "I was abandoned by my mom and dad," Snowy said softly. Katy's irritation disappeared at once.

"They didn't want me because of my missing leg. So when I was first born, they left me out in the middle of nowhere to die," Snowy chuckled slightly at the horrified expression on Katys face. "Well, obviously I didn't die. Two cats found me and brought me to their home. Coincidently, their home is the alley that's not far from here."

Katy gasped. "That explains the collar of teeth," she whispered.

"Anyways, I became a member of Bloodclan. And long story short I fell madly in love with the leader of Bloodclan and now he hates me because I ratted him out to Frostclan."

Katy tipped her head to one side, confused.

"I don't want to talk about it," Snowy sighed. "But do you get it?"

"I get that you're a very brave cat," Katy said, her voice cracking. Snowy groaned. "Don't start crying! Jeez."

"It's just … so sad," Katy sniffed.

"Whatever," Snowy huffed. "It was a long time ago."

Katy didn't say anything, feeling her annoyance of Snowy turn into sympathy.

* * *

><p>"But <em>why <em>can't I come exploring with you?" Harry whined. Tom sighed, casting a glance at Katy.

"Because I need to talk to Katy alone," he explained. Harry waggled his eyebrows. "About having kits?" he asked bluntly. Tom shook his head in exasperation. "No, not about _having kits._"

"Okay, I get it," Harry winked very unsubtly at Katy as he walked away.

"The lengths we go through to get him to leave," Katy sighed. They didn't want Harry to go with them because he walked so slowly it would have taken them to sunset to just get past the garden fence.

"Well, he's gone," Tom said. "For now, at least."

"Let's go exploring now!" Katy bounced on her feet, excited.

"Race you!" Tom streaked away in the direction of the forest. Katy pelted after him, and caught up fast. They bounded over the garden fence in two leaps, making Tom pant with exhaustion.

"You're nearly slower than Harry!" Katy crowed, screeching to a halt.

"My legs just acting up again," Tom lied.

"That's a load of lies!" Katy giggled. "I bet Snowy could leap that fence without breaking a sweat!"

"Yeah right," Tom snapped. "She's got three legs. Speaking of Snowy, has she left yet?"

"No. She's still hanging around. Did you know she used to live in the alley?"

Tom's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. Apparently she was close to the leader and everything," Katy said.

"Wow," Tom said. "Truthfully, I'm not entirely surprised."

"I wasn't either. But be nice to her, Tom. She's had a hard life."

"I'll be nice. I was actually thinking about asking her to go exploring with me," Tom said quickly.

"What's wrong with exploring with me?" Katy demanded.

"You know, like, exploring with … me. Just the two of us."

"Oh…" Katy caught on at once. "I didn't know you thought of her in that way," Katy didn't admit she felt slightly hurt. Deep down she had kind of half hoped Tom would ask her to go exploring with him, in the way he wanted to go exploring with Snowy. She shoved her thoughts away, forcing herself not to be upset.

"Well, you should ask her," Katy didn't know what else to say.

"I might," Tom turned his head away, not facing her. "But I don't know what she'd say… she just seems so … damaged."

* * *

><p>Katy opened her eyes to see a brilliant green light, the moon was reflecting off the forest trees.<p>

She was dreaming.

She padded forward, enjoying the soft breeze that ruffled her pelt. She didn't know what this place was, she had never been here before.

"Hello, Katy."

Katy jumped at the voice. She turned around, trying to find the source of it.

There wasn't a soul in sight.

"Who's there?" she called out. "Tom, if that's you, stop it. Jokes over."

"I am not Tom, and I am not playing a joke on you," the voice said.

"Then what do you want?" Katy asked, trying to push away her fear.

"I wanted to ask you if you have seen a three legged cat wandering around."

"Why do you want to know that-"

"Just answer yes or no," the voice snapped. "And I'll go away."

"Yes I have," Katy replied. "She's living with me and my twoleg."

"Excellent," the voice growled slowly. "Tell her to make a visit to the alley tomorrow."

"Okay," Katy stammered, confused. "I will. And who are you?"

There was another breeze, stronger then the last. Katy shuddered.

The voice did not speak again.


	4. Sticks and Rocks

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 4: Sticks and Rocks

"What are you saying?" Snowy cried. Katy shrugged helplessly at Snowys tone.

"You mean to tell me," Snowy continued slowly. "That some cat came to you in your dream and told you to tell me to go back to the _alley?_ Did you forget what I told you? I got kicked out of there," Snowy shook her head in confusion. Katy didn't know what to say. "Well, you don't have to go," she said at last. Snowys expression was unreadable. "Well, maybe I should go," she whispered. "What if it was Scourge that spoke to you?"

"I thought you hated him," Katy pointed out.

"I do!" Snowy cried. "That's why I want to see him. To give him a piece of my mind."

"Right," Katy said, not sure if she believed Snowy or not.

"That's it. I've decided," Snowy said confidently.

"You're not gonna go?"

"Oh I'm going," Snowy smiled. "But your coming with me."

"Katy said she'd be here ten minutes ago," Harry said crossly. Tom cast a glance at Katys house, wondering where she was.

"Maybe Margaret shut her cat flap," he suggested.

"I doubt it. I saw threelegs walk out of there earlier," Harry replied. Tom glared at him.

"Three-legs?" he growled. "She has a name you know."

"I don't care," Harry said defensively. "She creeps me out."

"That's a horrible thing to say," Tom couldn't believe Harry was being so rude. "The poor cat couldn't help being born with three legs."

"Her mom probably was abusing the catnip when she was pregnant with her," Harry muttered. "Anyway, I don't think Katys coming. Can we just play?"

Every Wednesday Harry, Tom, Spotty, and Katy met up together to play a game they invented called "Sticks and Rocks." The whole purpose of the game was to find the other teams object. Harry and Spotty were usually on a team and Tom and Katy were on the other.

"How do you expect me to play?" Tom scoffed. "Katys not here, and I'm not going to try and find your rocks by myself. You always cheat anyway."

"I do not!" Harry cried.

"Last time you threw your rocks in the creek," Tom pointed out.

"Well you hid your sticks in the forest!"

"Whatever. We all voted, it was fair."

"Lousy sticks," Harry grumbled. "Why do you always get to use the sticks, anyway? Do you know how hard it is to carry a rock around with your teeth?"

"Oh stop complaining," Tom said, then realized something. Spotty had not said a single word since he got here.

"Are you okay?" Tom asked Spotty. "You haven't said a word."

Spotty looked uneasy, and he shifted on his paws as if he wasn't sure what to say. "I had this really funny dream last night," he said at last.

"Was it a like Toms mouse dream?" Harry asked excitedly. "Speaking of that, Tom you should tell the story again-"

"Later, Harry," Tom interrupted. "What was your dream about, Spotty?"

"Well, there was this voice. It asked me if I had seen a three legged cat hanging around."

"Huh," Harry said, suddenly serious. "I had the exact same one."

"Well, I said no," Spotty said. "I panicked... I should have told him about Snowy, but I just couldn't. There was something creepy about the voice."

"I didn't tell him about Snowy either," Harry admitted. Tom was confused, he had not had the dream.

"Why didn't I get the dream?" he wondered aloud.

"Maybe Katy had the dream too," Spotty said.

"Yeah, she might have told the voice about her," Tom put the pieces together in a heartbeat. "That would explain why the voice didn't come to me, it found out what it needed to know."

"Can we just play our game?" Harry asked. But the excitement had died from his eyes.

"Yeah. I'll just be a team of one," Tom replied, shuddering slightly. There was something odd going on, and he had a feeling it had something to do with Snowy.

"Okay we're here," Katy whispered. "Can I go now?"

"Stop acting so frightened," Snowy said, watching Katy tremble like a frightened bird. "It's cool, alright... We we're invited here."

"_You _were invited here," Katy shook even harder. "I wasn't."

"Stop worrying!" Snowy smiled kindly at her. "Now lets go. I have someone I want you to meet," Snowy led the way into the heart of the alley. Katy winced as eyes pierced her pelt from every direction.

"Snowy!" a voice yelled, making Katy jump. She could feel her tail fluffing up, and she held it between her legs in embarrassment. Cats around her snickered. Katy turned her head around to see who had called Snowy. A _huge _dirty white tom was nuzzling Snowys head with his cheek, purring loudly. Snowy must have felt Katy looking at them, because she opened her eyes to look at her. "Katy, I'd like you to meet my dad," she said. Bone purred even louder.

"You're Snowys _Dad?" _Katy asked, unbelieving.

"Well, not technically," Snowy admitted. Katy just nodded her head, wanting to leave. Cats were casting mean looks at them from every direction, and Katy didn't like it one bit. She resented saying yes to coming here, if she hadn't she could have been playing sticks and rocks with her friends. . Katy was snapped out of her thoughts as the alley suddenly went deathly silent. Snowys expression turned scared for a heartbeat, but it was gone as quick as it had come... replaced with stone cold anger. A small black cat stood before her, and Katy recognized him from when she had gone exploring with Tom. The cats expression was mutinous, but when he spoke his voice was expressionless, not threatening.

"Why are you here?" he asked, his voice raspy. Snowy wasted no time getting to the point. "Katy had a dream about you," she said. All eyes turned to Katy, and she mentally cursed Snowy for dragging her into this.

"Oh?" the cat sneered. "And what was it about?"

Snowy prodded Katy in the side, trying to get her to speak. Katys legs shook, and when she first opened her mouth no sound came out. Cats snickered around her.

"Wow," the cat snapped. "What an unbelievable waste of my time."

"Some voice in my dream told me to tell Snowy to come back to the alley," Katy said, voice stammering over every second word.

"Well it wasn't me," the black cat said. "I don't want her here," he turned his cold gaze on Snowy. "So get out. And stop coming back. When will you see, Snowy, that no one here cares about you?"

Snowy looked so hurt that Katy felt a rush of anger boil into her veins. _How dare he speak to her like that? Who does he think he is? _The cat must have sensed Katys anger, because he turned to face her.

"What?" he snapped. Katy took a deep breath, and spoke with as much dignity as she could muster.

"I don't think you should talk to Snowy that way," she said.

"Katy, don't," Snowy said, her voice cracking. "Scourge will hurt you."

_What? _Katy could hardly believe it. _This is Scourge? The one Snowys been mooning after since I met her? _

"I said," Katy repeated, confidence growing with every breath. "I don't think you should talk to Snowy like that."

"I'll talk to her however I want," Scourge hissed. "She's just a three legged piece of nothing that's wasting my time."

Katy whipped out her front paw and dragged it across Scourges face. He gasped in alarm as blood trickled down his nose and trickled into the dirt.

It all happened at once.

Scourge leaped at Katy, screaming in fury. Katy choked as Scourges bone studded collar poked her in the neck. She tried to run away, but Scourge was fast. He raked his claws down Katys flank, making her howl in pain. Katy felt a rush of adrenalin pulse through her, and she shoved Scourge off with all her strength. Scourge crashed to the ground, and Katy braced herself for him to attack again.

He didn't.

Scourge lay in a crumpled heap, making no effort to stand up. Snowy let out a squeak of surprise, and rushed to his side.

"Katy how could you?" she cried. Katy opened her mouth, not sure what to say.

"He was being mean to you," she whispered.

"You hurt him!" Snowy buried her nose in Scourges fur. Then Scourge regained himself.

"Leave," he croaked at Katy. Katy nodded once and streaked away. Then he turned to Snowy.

"I need to talk to you," he said quietly. "Now," he heaved himself to his paws and limped away.

Snowy followed, hanging her head at the disgusted stares around her.


	5. A Different Feeling

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 5: A Different Feeling

"Good morning, Harry," Snowy called. Harry turned his head to see Snowy padding towards him.

_Good morning, threelegs, _Harry thought to himself. "Good morning," he said.

"Have you seen Katy anywhere?" Snowy asked. "I haven't seen her all morning."

"She's probably out with Tom somewhere," Harry replied. "I saw them go into the forest earlier."

"Oh," Snowy said dejectedly. "She didn't invite me."

Harry awkwardly shifted his paws, not sure what to say. "Well she was probably talking to him about yesterday when you two went into the alley," he said at last. "She was really upset about it, you know."

Snowy lowered her eyes. "I thought so. I shouldn't have yelled at her… I don't know what came over me."

"You should go apologize," Harry suggested.

"I'm going to. Harry, can I ask you something?" Snowy asked. Harry nodded his head. "Ask away."

"Are we friends?"

Harry stared at her for a moment, not sure how to answer. "I guess so."

Snowys expression turned sad.

"It's not that I don't like you!" Harry rushed to his defense, not wanting to offend her. "It's just that I barely know anything about you. And we have completely different lives."

"Well, I want to change that," Snowy whispered. "I'm tired of wishing I was back in the alley. You know what? I don't think the alley is that great anymore."

"That's good," Harry said. "Snowy, I know about Scourge and what he did to Katy. He's a mean cat. I don't think he's worth you," Harry said, embarrassed that he said his feelings out loud.

"Thank you," Snowy said quietly. "I'm done with him, anyway. When he said he needed to talk to me, I was expecting him to apologize. But all he did was insult me more."

"Forget about him. He's a loser," Harry said. Snowy didn't say anything.

"Tom, Katy and I are good cats," Harry continued. "Why don't you stick with us for a while?"

"I think I'm going to," Snowy replied. "See you later Harry, I'm going to go apologize to Katy."

"By the way, Toms got the hots for you," Harry called after her.

"What?"

"Nothing."

* * *

><p>"Okay it's time to pick our teams," Harry stated. Katy, Tom, Snowy, and Spotty stood before him. Snowy felt warm and fuzzy inside, Katy had invited her to play sticks and rocks with them. She had found Katy and Tom practicing their hunting in the forest, so she apologized to Katy. Katy was very forgiving, saying she would have done the same thing if she had loved Scourge.<p>

"I choose Spotty!" Harry bellowed, shaking Snowy from her thoughts. Spotty let out a squeak of excitement and charged over to Harry.

"Snowy, who do you want on your team?" Harry asked. Snowy looked back and forth from Katy and Tom, not sure who to choose. Snowy didn't understand why Tom looked so hopeful she was going to pick him.

"Tom, Snowy said at last. Tom padded over to her, smiling slightly.

"Hey, teammate," Snowy joked. "Ready to throw our rocks in the creek?"

"I heard that!" Harry said crossly. Tom snorted. "Yeah. I'm also ready to hide our sticks in the forest!"

Harry grumbled something inaudible.

"Since you're both intent on being so rude, our team gets an extra player," he huffed, motioning for Katy to join them.

"We get to use sticks!" Katy stated. Tom groaned. "You used sticks last time!"

"Well I can't carry rocks," Harry exclaimed. Tom narrowed his eyes. "Why not?"

"I have a bad tooth."

"That's the dumbest thing I ever heard," Tom scoffed.

"Fine you can use sticks," Harry grumbled. "But don't act surprised when all my teeth fall out."

"I'll keep an eye on it," Tom snapped.

"Okay have we decided? Can we go now?" Spotty asked, trying to pick up a rock that looked like a small boulder compared to him.

"Okay… go!" Harry cried, and Snowy picked up her stick and charged in the other direction, Tom close behind.

"Where should we hide these?" Snowy asked. Tom dropped the stick so he could talk. "Not in the forest, or we'll never hear the end of it from Harry."

Snowy giggled. "Let's dig a hole and bury them."

"Not a bad idea," Tom agreed. "But I think they would consider it cheating."

"Huh. Well there's not really any good place around here," Snowy said, looking around. "If we hide here Harry would find it in seconds."

"I have an idea," Tom said suddenly. "Follow me."

Tom led Snowy down a trail in the forest. Snowy watched Tom gracefully leap over fallen trees with admiration. _He's so lean and strong, _Snowy thought to herself. _Not like any housecat I've ever seen. _She followed him for a while, enjoying the crackle of leaves beneath her paws and the crisp spring air.

Then she saw it.

A beautiful waterfall stood before her, pouring shiny blue water into a pool below.

"It's beautiful," Snowy said quietly. Tom looked back at her. "I've never shown anyone this place before," he admitted. "It's nice, isn't it…"

Snowy nodded her head, unable to speak. The water reflected off Tom's eyes, turning them a brilliant shade of blue. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Where should we hide our sticks?" she asked. But she had lost interest in the gam, and she could tell Tom had too.

"Over here," he said, and led Snowy into another small clearing filled with green leaves and trees. He dropped his stick into a pile of moss, and Snowy did the same.

"Ready to head back?" Tom asked.

"Yeah," Snowy smiled. Tom embarrassedly lowered his eyes and padded away. Snowy followed, realizing she felt something different. _I feel… special, _Snowy thought to herself, realizing she hadn't felt special in moons.


	6. The Truth About Scourge

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 6: The Truth about Scourge

"Hello."

Bone turned around, trying to figure out who was speaking to him. Four big cats stood before him, glaring down on him like he was a particularly juicy piece of prey.

"Greetings," Bone replied, then mentally kicked himself for saying _greetings. _The red cat on the left snickered.

"Where's the black kit that you all bow down to?" The one in the middle asked. "I'd like to have a word with him."

"He's in his den," Bone said cautiously, wondering why these cats wanted to speak to Scourge. The cats stood there staring at him for a moment, then the red one spoke again. "Well? Are you going to show us the way or what?"

Bone breathed his anger out his nose and stalked towards the crack in the den where Scourge was residing. "Follow me," he growled. The cats stomped there was across the clearing, turning heads from other cats.

"He's in there," Bone snapped when they arrived at the den. "Now can you handle it from here or do I have to hold your paw on the way in?"

The red cat glared at Bone, but didn't say anything. Bone glared at them as they walked past, and when they were all in the den, he waited. _Who are they? _He wondered. _And what do they want?_

Katy woke up to the sound of Snowy coughing and retching.

"Are you okay?" she asked as Snowys body convulsed again in her bed. Snowy coughed another few times before answering. "I think I'm sick," she croaked.

"Well, obviously. Do you want to go to the vet?"

Snowy snorted. "Do I need to go to the what?"

"The vet," Katy said defensively. "They'll fix you right up."

"When I lived in the alley, I knew a cat that went to the vet before he joined Bloodclan. He spoke horror stories about how he went to the vet and they cut off parts of him that corrupted his kithood."

Katy rolled her eyes. "It's so he couldn't have kittens," she explained.

"Well that's disturbing."

"How is it disturbing?" Katy stopped talking, realizing Snowy would never understand. "Just forget it. If you want to suffer it out by yourself, fine by me."

Snowys hind leg collapsed and she fell into a shaking heap, body convulsing again. "Don't worry about me," she coughed. "I think it's just a slight cold."

Katy sighed and stalked out of her bed, realizing she was not going to be able to sleep anymore tonight. Snowy didn't ask where she was going, just lay there, shivering. Katy pushed her head out of her cat flap and breathed the crisp night air. She walked slowly across her garden, leaping the fence that separated her yard from Toms in two leaps. _I can't believe I'm doing this, _Katy thought inwardly as she padded up to Toms door. Taking a deep breath, she pushed her way through Tom's cat door and into his house. The house was nicely warm, and Katy relished the feeling of breathing fresh air instead of Snowys sick atmosphere. She found Tom in his cat bed, curled into a ball.

"Hey," Katy whispered. Tom grunted and didn't reply. Katy poked him in the side with her paw, making Tom wake up at once. He turned around to see who had woken him, then visibly relaxed when he realized it was just Katy.

"Is it morning already?" he grumbled. Katy shook her head. "No. I was just wondering if I could sleep here tonight."

"Is there something wrong with your own house?"

"No. Well, yeah, I guess. Snowys sick and her coughing and retching and sneezing keeps waking me up. Not to mention it smells totally sick in there."

"Snowys sick?" Tom asked, his face turning worried. Katy narrowed her eyes at Tom's obvious concern.

"Yes she is, but she said she's fine. It's just a cold."

Almost instantly, Tom stood up and stretched, trying to wake himself up. "I'm going to go see her," he announced, making Katy's jaw drop in surprise. "I said she's fine," Katy snapped. "There would be no point in going over there."

"Well I'm going to anyway," Tom said sniffily. For some reason, this fueled Katy's anger. "Why?" she snapped. "You like her or something?"

"Katy, I think I'm in love with her," Tom admitted. "And if there's anything I can do to make her feel better, I'm going to do it."

"Well it's not like she's ever going to love you!" Katy cried. Tom turned back to look at her, his expression hurt.

"She loves Scourge! He's all she ever talks about, and guess what?" Katy continued, tears brimming in her eyes. "He's all she'll ever care about."

Tom stared at her for a heartbeat longer, then pushed his way out of the cat flap, his tail drooping with sadness.

Bone was frustrated; he couldn't hear a word that was going on in Scourges den. He pressed his ear against the lichen door, trying to catch a few words.

"You need to leave," Scourge was saying, his voice tired. "I don't want what you're offering."

"You don't have any other options," a cat hissed back. "Just tell us where she is, and we'll go away."

"Yeah!" another voice said. "It's not like she can just disappear."

It hit Bone like a blow to the side of the head.

Two of those cats were the ones that had attacked Snowy a long time ago, and they had made friends. And they were looking for Snowy.

"Just tell us where she is," the cat whispered. "Or we'll kill you."

Bone stood there trembling, not sure how Scourge was going to react. When Snowy was here he had acted like he hated her, was revolted by the sight of her, so why would he care what happened to her? Bone pressed his ear farther into the lichen, waiting impatiently for Scourges response.

"No," Scourge said at last. "No, I won't do it."

"Very well," one of the cats growled. "You have three days to change your mind. When you do, you know where to find us."

Bone jumped backwards as the four cats stalked out of the den, thanking his lucky stars they didn't say anything to him. Bone waited until they were out of sight, and then pushed his way into Scourges den. Scourge was curled up in the corner, trembling violently.

"What was that all about?" Bone asked quietly. Scourge didn't move as he replied. "They're going to kill me," he whispered. "All over this stupid grudge."

"What do you mean?" Bone dared to ask.

"Snowy," Scourge muttered. "Why do you think I was so mean to her?"

"I don't know," Bone admitted.

"Are you blind?" Scourge snapped. "Do you really think I'm that incapable of having feelings?"

Bone didn't know how to respond.

"I needed to get her away from here," Scourge whispered. "Or they'll kill her."


	7. Unexpected

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 7: Unexpected

"Hey, Snowy… are you okay?" Tom whispered. Snowy lay shivering, and didn't reply. Tom softly prodded her side with a sheathed paw, making her open her eyes.

"Tom?" she croaked.

"Katy told me you were sick so I came over to take care of you," Tom said. Snowy smiled briefly.

"That's the kindest thing anyone's done for me in a long time."

"Well you deserve it," Tom said quietly. Snowy stared at him for several heartbeats before she could reply.

"I don't deserve anything," she said bluntly.

"Of course you do," Tom said defensively. "Why would you say such a thing?"

"Because I'm a traitor," Snowy said simply. "I told Frostclan about the attack."

Tom was confused, not sure what 'Frostclan' was. Snowy took the silence as an opportunity to keep talking.

"And now Scourge hates me," tears started brimming in Snowys eyes as she spoke. "You should have heard the way he spoke to me, Tom. It was terrible…"

"I would have clawed his eyes out," Tom snapped. "What a worthless piece of fox dung! You don't deserve that kind of disrespect at all."

Snowy looked up at him. "You really think so?"

"I know so," Tom stated confidently. "You have such a kind heart, Snowy. I'm sure you just told Frostclan about the attack because you didn't want to hurt them."

"I didn't," Snowy said, surprised.

"And if _anyone _is mean to you because you don't want to hurt others, then they can go rot in the Dark Forest for all I care."

"Aw Scourge…"

Tom cut her off. "_Especially _Scourge." He narrowed his eyes. "I don't even know the guy, but I can already tell he's not worth the tears that keep coming up in your eyes."

Embarrassed, Snowy blinked her watery eyes away before speaking again. She looked gratefully at Tom, who shuffled his paws awkwardly at her gaze.

"Thank you, Tom," Snowy said warmly. "You are a great friend."

"You rest now," Tom said. "Maybe if you're feeling better in the morning we can play sticks and rocks with Harry and Katy."

"I'd like that," Snowy yawned. "I want you to be my partner."

_I want you to be my partner._

Tom shoved his misleading thoughts away and forced himself not to grin like a little kit.

* * *

><p>Katy's anger had escaladed farther than she ever thought it could go. <em>How dare Tom fall for that stupid three legged cat? <em>She thought furiously. _What does she have that I don't? I have four legs, she doesn't! I mean for crying out loud she doesn't even have any fur around her neck! Not to mention her pelt is always filthy and full of scars!_

For a brief second Katy felt bad for thinking such mean thoughts about her friend, but they were gone in nearly a second as another thought crossed her mind.

_How dare Tom choose her over me, when I've been here for him since we were kits._

_Well I'll show them!_

Katy stalked away from the direction of her house, repulsed by the thought of seeing Tom snuggled up to Snowy. She leaped the fence separating her garden from the road, pausing at the top to look around her. Cars and trucks screamed by, bringing up a ghastly smoke that Katy was forced to cough on. When there was a pause in the traffic, Katy leaped down and raced across the road, her heart pounding in her chest in fear that she would be hit. Katy stopped to catch her breath and think for a minute. _Where am I going, anyway? _She thought, and then narrowed her eyes as anger washed over her again. _Oh wait, it's not like anyone's going to care in the first place. _Katy padded onward, flattening her eyes at the new surroundings. A few twolegs were stumbling around, some pointed at Katy and let out cries. One even dared to try and pick her up. Katy had hissed in his face, nearly choking on his rancid breath. She ran into the darkness, stumbling blindly over trash and veering away from walls. Katy looked behind her, distracted by a crashing noise.

Katy ended up crashing into another cat.

"I am so sorry!" Katy cried, backing up. She would be prepared to run if the cat tried to attack. To her surprise, he didn't.

"Not a problem!" the big white cat chuckled. "In this time of the night, id have been surprised if you had managed to dodge me."

"Well, thanks for being so understanding," Katy said warmly. Then she noticed the dead mouse under the cat's claws. It was obviously dead before he found it. The stench made Katy want to bend over and hurl her dinner all over the pavement.

"Is that your," Katy paused to take a breath of fresh air. "Dinner?"

The cat looked down disgustedly at the mouse. "It might be. Hopefully not."

Katy giggled at the cats tone, making him smile warmly at her.

"Hopefully Scourge eats this one and gets more sick then he already is."

Katy's heart nearly fell out of her chest. _This cat is part of Bloodclan, _Katy realized. Her legs trembled slightly for a second, and then stopped as she realized something else.

_Scourge is sick?_

Katy decided to go out on a limb, since this cat didn't seem to be much of a threat.

"I know Scourge," she said, shrugging her shoulders as if it were no big deal.

"Oh really?" the cat raised an eyebrow. "You know, lots of cats say that when they need him to do something."

"I don't need him to do anything," Katy scoffed. "Does he still have the scar on his face where I scratched him?"

The cat's eyes seemed to stretch bigger than the moon. "THAT"S WHERE I RECOGNIZE YOU FROM!" he shouted, his voice echoing in every direction. "I'VE BEEN SITTING HERE THIS ENTIRE TIME TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE THE HECK I'VE SEEN YOU BEFORE!"

"Shh!" Katy hissed. "You'll wake the twolegs!"

The cat lowered his voice at once, realizing he had been shouting. "Sorry," he apologized. "But… wow!" he shook his head in admiration. "What an act of rebellion! I've never seen such a brilliant act of defiance!"

"Well, I'm glad someone got a kick out of it," Katy snapped. "He nearly clawed my throat out."

"You know," the cat continued to speak as if Katy hadn't said anything. "You would make a great warrior of Bloodclan. You interested?"

Katy didn't know how to respond, her anger slowly melting into shock. "Really?" she stammered at last.

"Yeah," the cat said. "If you want I can bring it up with Scourge. He's so weak anyways I'm sure he wouldn't say no to a new warrior."

Katy could hardly believe it as her mouth opened at said the words that completely defied what her heart was telling her.

"Yes, I'm interested."


	8. Games

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 8: Games

"Tom, have you seen Katy anywhere?" Harry asked worriedly. Tom shook his head no. "I haven't seen her since we got into a fight yesterday," he said sadly. "She's probably in her house still."

"But she's not," Harry stated. "I saw Snowy walking out of there earlier, and she said she hadn't seen Katy either."

"Huh," Tom didn't know what to think. _Where could she have gone? _He thought. He could tell Harry was thinking the same thing.

"Let's wait until tonight," Tom decided. "And if we haven't seen her by then then I'm going to go look for her."

"Maybe I should go home," Katy whispered. Bone looked over at her. "It's no big deal," he said. "I'm sure Scourge won't mind you're here."

"What if he gets mad?" Katy asked. "What if he attacks me for crying out loud?"

"Oh he won't do that," Bone scoffed. "He's so weak and sick I'd be surprised if he even raised his voice at you."

"Well, okay," Katy said uneasily. "Are you going to go tell him now?"

"I think you should tell him, Katy," Bone said. Katy sighed, not sure what to do. "I guess I'll go tell him," she said at last. "But I'm not going to like it." She walked towards the direction of Scourges den, trying to steady her trembling legs and pounding heart.

"Scourge?" she said, mentally kicking herself when her voice cracked.

"What?" Scourge snapped harshly, making Katy flinch.

"Um, I was wondering if I could talk to you," Katy called. She waited a few minutes for a reply.

"Do I need to give you a personal invitation to come in?" Scourge growled.

"Uh, no," Katy stammered, and then pushed her way into Scourges den. He was lying in a corner, pelt matted and gray with dust and dirt. He turned to look at her, and Katy forced herself to look into his cold blue eyes.

"I had a feeling you'd be back," he said simply, narrowing his eyes. Katy couldn't help but look at the dirty ground.

"I want to be a member of Bloodclan," she mumbled. "If you'll have me."

"Ha!" Scourge snorted. "Yeah right. You'd miss you're soft twoleg life too much."

Anger fueled through Katy's body, making her glare menacingly at Scourge. "That's a lie," she snapped. "I won't miss my twoleg life at all."

"Then let's do a little test," Scourge said without skipping a beat. "Or, a game let's say."

"What kind of game?" Katy asked, wondering if it would be anything like sticks and rocks. To her dismay, it was nothing like that.

"There's this one cat that lives here, Spots. I really don't like him. Get him to leave and I'll let you stay."

Katy gulped. "How am I supposed to make him leave?" she asked. Scourge rolled his eyes. "Use your imagination."

Katy stood there, feeling like she was forgetting something. Then it hit her. "If this is a game, then what are the rules?" she asked. Scourge looked back up at her, smiling slightly. "Rules? Katy, you're smarter than I thought you were."

Katy's heart pounded in her chest as she saw Scourge smile, and it wasn't because she was scared of him.

"Okay, rules… let's see…" Scourges smiling expression didn't change, and Katy wished it would. Her chest was starting to hurt from her heart beating against it so hard.

"1. Make him leave. 2. Make sure he never comes back. That's it."

"Okay," Katy said.

"Oh yeah, and one more thing," Scourge said suddenly.

"What?" Katy asked.

"When you're done, I want to see his blood stain your claws."

Katy started trembling again. "Okay," she whispered. They sat in silence for a few moments before Scourge spoke again.

"Well? He demanded. "Are you going to do it today or not?"

Katy forced herself not to snap back a nasty retort and stalked out of his den. _Now which one is Spots? _She wondered.

"How did it go?" Katy jumped as someone spoke behind her. She turned around, and visibly relaxed as she realized it was just Bone.

"It went okay," she muttered. "Now do you know who 'Spots' is? I need to have a word with him."

"He's that ugly yellow tabby over there," Bone nodded his head in the direction of a scrawny yellow cat.

"Thanks," Katy walked away before Bone could ask why she needed to talk to Spots. Spots had his back turned to her, talking to a very large gray tabby. _How am I going to do this? _Katy thought desperately. _I don't want to hurt him, so what can I do to make him leave? _Then a thought hit her.

_I could lie._

"Ahem," Katy cleared her throat. Spots turned around. "What?" he snapped. The cat he was talking to snickered as Katy winced.

"Um, Scourge told me to tell you that you have to leave at once," Katy said bravely. Spots snorted. "Why?" he snapped. Katy desperately looked around to find an excuse. She saw Scourge glaring at them from the entrance to his den. Spots noticed it too, because he was starting to look uncomfortable.

"Why does he want me to leave?" he asked again.

"He doesn't like you," Katy said simply, her confidence growing. "And quite frankly, neither do I."

"I don't even know you," Spots said, baffled.

"I'm the one who scratched Scourge across the face," Katy said. Spots widened his eyes in a mixture of surprise and fear.

"Do you want me to hurt you too?" Katy growled. Spots shook his head no.

"Then I advise you leave," she whispered. Spots narrowed his eyes. "Or what?"

"Or you're not going to like what happens."

"Tell me, you little creep. Are you part of Bloodclan?" Spots growled.

"Yes," Katy said, enjoying the new feeling of power that had risen over her.

"That should be a no," Spots said, then stretched out a claw and dragged it across Katy's face. Katy swiped a paw out and clawed Spots chest, making him shriek as her claws dug into his flesh. He tried to knock her over but he was scrawny, and was no match for Katy's heavier weight. Katy knocked him over in one shove, and she leaped on top of him, pinning him down. Katy knew in her heart she was playing it up because she knew Scourge was watching, but she didn't care. She grabbed his throat with her claws, causing blood to well up, staining her paws.

"Are you scared of me?" Katy hissed.

"No," Spots choked.

"That," Katy smiled evilly. "Should be a yes."


	9. I Need a Heartbeat

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 9: I Need a Heartbeat

"_I'm sorry," Scourge whispered. "I only said those things to protect you." _

"_Protect me from what?" Snowy asked quietly. _

"_From things too awful to explain to you," Scourge sighed. "But I can explain this. I want you to come back to the alley."_

_Snowy widened her eyes in surprise. "What? Why?"_

"_Because I still love you," Scourge said, looking into her eyes. "And every day when you're not here my heart beats less and less."_

"_They say you don't have a heart," Snowy said. _

"_I have a heart, but I need a heartbeat," Scourge said back. "And only you can make it do so."_

Snowy woke up with a jolt, breathing fast. _That was the third Scourge dream this week, _she thought worriedly. _What's happening to me?_

Scourge sat hunched in his den, shivering. And it wasn't from the cold. Today was the day the four cats were going to come for him, to ask him where Snowy was. _I can't tell them where she is, _Scourge thought miserably. _But if I don't, they'll kill me... _Scourge broke off his thoughts to cough violently. _I guess if they kill me there won't be much of a loss, _he thought retchedly. Scourge stood up and stretched, wincing as his bones trembled beneath his weight. Sighing, he padded out of his den, squinting his eyes in the morning sun. Then he widened his eyes as he saw something that surprised him.

"Spots!" Scourge howled. "What are you doing here?"

"I live here," Spots retorted.

"Didn't Sadie or whatever her name is tell you to leave?"

"She tried," Spots snorted. "But sorry. She wasn't intimidating enough."

Scourge leaped towards him, ignoring the way his muscles screamed in protest. Spots tried to jerk away, but Scourge was fast. He grabbed Spots exposed throat with his claws, and cats around them gasped as he ripped his arm back, taking half of Spots neck with him.

"I told you to leave," Scourge hissed in Spots ear, but the message was lost.

Spots had died nearly instantly.

Cats who had seen what had just happened pretended they didn't, but Scourge wasn't blind. He could see the way they were looking at him.

And it made him smile.

_They're scared of me again, _he thought to himself, then he smiled. _They should be. _Then he locked eyes with Katy. Her eyes were hollow, expressionless. Scourge looked away.

Snowy padded out of the house, enjoying the fresh breeze blowing in her face. She saw Tom sitting in the garden, and she smiled at him. Tom got flustered and turned away. Snowy walked over to him, admiring the way his orange fur looked in the sun.

"Good morning," Snowy said cheerfully.

"Hi," Tom said, then pushed a small white flower towards her. "I stole this from Harry's garden, and I thought you might like it."

"Oh," Snowy said, surprised. "Thank you." She picked up the white flower gently with her teeth and set it next to her door. "Now I'll think of you every time I go inside," she said kindly. Tom stammered something inaudible. "I'm happy you like it," he blurted out at last. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Tom awkwardly spoke again. "What are your plans for the day?" he asked.

"I was thinking about visiting the alley," Snowy replied. Immediately Toms eyes hardened. "Not to visit that Scourge character right?" he said. Snowy rolled her eyes. "Oh of course not. I want to visit Bone. I miss him."

"Okay," Tom said, relieved.

"Speaking of Scourge, I've been having these weird dreams about him lately," Snowy admitted. Tom raised an eyebrow. "What kind of dreams?"

"Well he always tells me he loves me and blah blah blah."

"Is that all he says?"

"Well, no. Then he tells me he doesn't have a heart-"

"Well he doesn't," Tom broke in. Snowy gave him a hard stare before continuing. "He tells me he doesn't have a heart," she repeated. "Because he needs me. Apparently I'm the only thing that makes it beat."

"I wish I had thought of that line," Tom muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing," Tom said quickly. "Forget about him, Snowy. He's a dirt bag."

"Yeah," Snowy said reluctantly. "Whatever, I don't even care. He can live without a heartbeat for all I care."

" Hey guys!" Harry's voice broke into their conversation. "You wouldn't believe what happened. Some idiot ripped a huge clump of flowers out of my flower bed. My twoleg is so mad!"

Tom awkwardly shuffled his paws while Snowy pushed the flower behind a flowerpot so Harry wouldn't see it."

"Well that's odd," Tom said. "It was probably a fox."

"A fox," Harry scoffed. "Yeah right. What would a fox want with flowers?"

"Maybe he was being kind and giving them to his friend," Snowy put in, smiling at Tom. Tom got so flustered Snowy thought he was going to turn tail and leave right there.

"Anyways," Harry continued, dismissing the flower issue. "Want to come over today? My twoleg is watching a really great show about cats with super powers."

"As tempting as that sounds, I already have things to do," Snowy said. "I'm going to go visit my dad in the alley."

"I'll come watch the show," Tom said, not wanting to be flustered and awkward around Snowy any longer then he had to. "I don't have anything to do."

"Great!" Harry said gleefully.

"I'll see you guys later," Snowy said, then turned and started walking away in the direction of the road. As soon as she was out of eyesight, Harry turned and waggled his eyes at Tom.

"I know it was you who destroyed my flowers!" he said gleefully. "So, now she's getting flowers, huh?"

"I was just trying to be nice," Tom scoffed.

"I don't recall you tearing apart my flower bed for Katy."

"Oh for crying out loud!" Tom cried. "How did you know it was me anyway?"

"Please. You're scent was so strong at first I thought you had done you're business all over my flowers."

"Jeez," Tom sighed. "You're silly. Let's just go watch the show."

"I told you, I don't know where she is," Scourge said for what seemed like the billionth time. The biggest cat in the group glared at Scourge. "I'll give you one last chance," he hissed. "Tell me where she is or die right now."

Scourge spat in his face. The big cat recoiled, hissing and spitting. Scourge took the opportunity to bolt in the opposite direction.

"After him!" The cat screamed. Paws thundered after him.

_Oh jeez oh jeez oh jeez,_ Scourge thought, starting to get scared. He knew if they caught him he would be dead. He charged as fast as he could, then saw his opportunity. Still going the same pace, he turned a sharp right and flew down the alley. The cats raced forward, and Scourge breathed a sigh of relief. Then he crashed, but not into a wall. Scourge jumped up and looked at what he'd run into.

"Snowy?" he whispered.

"Scourge?" Snowy said, eyes widening in surprise. "What are you-"

"RUN!" Scourge yowled, then nudged her up. They sprinted away side by side.

"What are we running from?" Snowy gasped as she ran.

"There's four cats," Scourge started, the gasped for breath. "They want to kill me for not telling them where you are."

"What?" Snowy yelped. "Why?"

"They want to kill you," Scourge gasped, running out of breath. His legs hurt like never before, and he was surprised that Snowy was keeping up on only three legs.

"Why didn't you just tell me where I am?" Snowy snapped. "It's not like you care anyway!"

"Of course I care!" Scourge growled. "Why the heck do you think I was so mean to you?"

"Uh, because you hate me?"

"No!" Scourge screeched. "Jeez you're stupid!"

"Oh shut up!" Snowy screamed. "I am sick and tired of you're crap!"

"I did it because I care about you," Scourge hissed. "And if anything happened to you it would break my heart."

Snowy stopped running, and just stood there. "You don't have a heart," she said at last. Scourge stopped running too, and looked back at her. "I have a heart," he said after a long pause.

"But only you make it beat."

Snowy opened her mouth in surprise.

"Now come on!" Scourge called. "They're not gonna get us!"


	10. When Time Stood Still

Quiet like the Snow

Chapter 10: When Time Stood Still (Last Chapter)

"Just come in," Snowy encouraged. "They're nice, trust me."

"No."

"There's no point in sitting in the rain all night," Snowy hissed. "Just come in!" She butted Scourge with her head, making him stumble into the doorway.

Harry and Tom looked up from their TV show. Harry looked surprised, unlike Tom, who looked completely bewildered.

"Good morning," Snowy said.

They didn't reply.

Snowy prodded Scourge with a paw. "Say hello," she whispered.

Scourge just glared at them. "Fat kittypets!" he spat.

"SCOURGE!" Snowy screeched. Then she turned to her friends. "He doesn't mean it," she explained quickly. Harry just shrugged. Tom flattened his ears and narrowed his eyes.

"Sorry," Scourge mumbled after a long awkward pause.

"It's okay," Harry said kindly.

"So," Snowy said, casting a nervous glance at Tom. "Harry, Tom ... This is Scourge."

"Hello," Harry said.

"Hi," Scourge said flatly. Snowy was getting a terrible vibe from Tom, who was growling and hissing under his breath.

"How did you two meet again," Tom said at last. Snowy winced as Tom glared disgustedly at Scourge.

"It's a long story," Snowy said quickly, before Scourge could launch into the story of how they had a group of cats trying to kill them. Snowy turned to look at Scourge, and was surprised to see he was staring at Tom with such hatred she thought he was going to leap out and attack him right there.

"She's mine," Scourge suddenly hissed. Tom stomped up to him and glared down upon him. "What makes you think she wants you, you stupid piece of fox-dung-"

"Guys!" Snowy broke in. "Stop!"

"Tell him, Snowy," Scourge growled. "Tell him how you still love me."

Snowy stood rigid, with both cats staring at her, waiting for her answer.

* * *

><p>"Good morning Bone," Katy yawned. Bone blinked open his eyes at the sound of his name.<p>

"Hello," he sighed. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes," Katy lied. _Except for the fact that Scourge walked through my dreams all night. Again. _

Katy didn't know what to think about the fact that Scourge was occupying her thoughts more and more every day.

_I think I'm in love with him, _Katy thought miserably. _Why oh why did I have to fall in love with SCOURGE for crying out loud! _

"Anything on your mind?" Bone asked, breaking Katy out of her thoughts.

"No," Katy lied again. "I'm just tired still."

Suddenly, a new face pushed its way into the box, making Katy jump in surprise.

She had never seen the face before.

"Get out, now," it growled. Katy stood still, but Bone got up immediately. "Get up," he hissed.

"What's going on?" Katy whispered, frightened. Bone didn't reply, and hurried his way out of the box.

The whole alley was lined up against the brick wall.

"Move," the huge cat grunted, shoving Katy. She fell to the ground, and the alley cats tittered nervously. Katy looked around, wondering where Scourge was. He was no where to be seen.

The cat shoved her again, making her crash painfully against the bricks. Once she was lined up with the others, the huge cat started talking. His voice was raspy, and it chilled Katy to the bone.

"Does anyone know where Scourge went?" he whispered.

The alley cats stood in a rigid silence.

"ANSWER ME!" he screamed. A small yellow cat stepped forward, trembling.

"H-he's w-w-with S-snowy," he stammered. "I saw t-them run away t-t-together."

"Thank you." the big cat smiled menacingly. "Now where did they go?"

The yellow cat shook his head, not knowing how to answer.

_Where could they have gone? _Katy wondered.

Then it hit her.

Snowy took Scourge to her house.

"I know where they went," Katy called out. The big cat snapped his head around to look at her.

"Oh really," he hissed. "Where?"

"To my garden," Katy said, wondering why he wanted to know where Scourge was. _Maybe he's worried about him, _Katy decided. The big cat smiled at evilly, his cold eyes boring into Katys.

It took Katy two heartbeats to realize she had just done something extremely stupid.

* * *

><p>Snowy stared at Scourge, then back at Tom.<p>

She didn't know what to say.

The time seemed to stand still.

"I-I..." Snowy stammered.

"I'M SORRY!" a voice screamed. Snowy jumped, and turned around to see Katy, ragged and dirty by the door.

"Katy!" Snowy gasped. "Where have you been, I've been so worried-"

"There's no time!" Katy cried. "Snowy, those cats-" she was cut off as another cat burst through the cat flap.

Then another.

Then two more.

Scourge let out a cry of alarm as he realized who they were.

"You're time is up," the big cat screeched, then he leaped forward.

"No!" Katy screamed.

It all happened in a blur.

Katy leaped in front of Scourge, the big cats claws dug into her flesh. He ripped her off, tearing off clumps of fur and skin. Katy screamed, eyes blurred by the blood that stained them. All of Snowy's instincts told her to leap in and help her friend.

But she couldn't move. She couldn't even breathe.

Katys mouth opened and blood gushed out, staining the carpet dark red.

"No!" Tom screamed, then leaped on top of Katys attacker. He showed him no mercy, making Snowy open her eyes in shock.

Tom could fight, and more importantly, he could fight well.

He climbed on top of the cat, and swiped his paws in front of his face to claw at his eyes. The cat howled as Tom ripped his claws across his eyes, blood splurging in every direction, staining Snowys white fur.

Then she noticed the other cats were advancing on her and Tom.

_We're outnumbered, _Snowy thought desperately. Then another thought struck her.

_We're going to die today. _

Then Harry let out a bloodcurdling scream and leaped at one of the cats, claws extended.

Snowy stood deathly still, the battle screams around her were quiet like the snow.

**Keep watch for the Broken Cat book three: Colder then my Heartbeat**

_Thank you for reading! _


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